The first meal I ever learned how to cook was “noodles and sauce”, which was just what it sounds like. Noodles + plain tomato sauce.

After a few years I really moved up in the world and started adding some mozzarella cheese into the mix, but that was about the extent of it. For a LONG time. Like, until I was in my 20’s and my husband finally told me that maybe a box of Scalloped Potatoes with bread crumbs on top wasn’t really the best thing to make a meal of.

A few years, a few kids, and LOTS of trial and error later – and here we are. I like *almost* everything, am a die-hard sushi fan, and am always on the lookout for new recipes, flavors, and combinations to try.

This meal is definitely not reinventing the wheel, by any means, but it WAS a kid-favorite of last week – so I call that a win.

Fry up some ground beef that you’ve seasoned well with salt, pepper, garlic and onion powder.

Add in a jar of your favorite spaghetti sauce, and a jar of your favorite pizza sauce. If you are feeling adventerous, you could also use this easy pizza sauce instead. I used some spaghetti sauce with peppers, onions, and sausage, and the kids loved that extra kick. Mix in a pound of parboiled rotini with the sauce, and mix together with a pouch of mini Hormel pepperoni.

Layer half in a pan, and then top with generous amounts of pizza cheese, and a layer of pepperoni.

Top with more of the pasta, and another layer of cheese and pepperoni. I sprinkled the top with parmesan cheese and Italian seasonings.

Bake in a 325 degree oven for about 30 minutes. This would also be awesome in a slow cooker! When everything is bubbly and delicious, take it out of the oven and serve it with some crusty garlic bread, and a green salad.

Yield: 6 servings

Pepperoni Rotini Bake

Delicious and twisty rotini is loaded with pepperoni and then doused in marinara and pizza sauce! This was my kids favorite meal for a LONG time.

Instructions

Combine browned and seasoned ground beef with the spaghetti sauce and the pizza sauce as well as the mini pepperoni.

Mix with the parboiled noodles, and layer half in a 9x9 or 10x13 baking dish. Sprinkle half of cheese on top, and layer half of pepperoni on this. Top with the rest of the pasta mixture, the remaining cheese, and the rest of the pepperoni. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese.

Bake at 325 for 30-40 minutes, or until bubbly and melted. If casserole starts to brown on top, cover with foil.

About Nicole Johnson

Nicole is the founder and photographer here at Or Whatever You Do, where she turned her passion for being on the computer into a creative outlet that also helps feed the family. WINNING. She has lots of kids, and lots of chickens, and loves to travel.

Comments

Hi Beth! Thanks for stopping by. Sorry for not including the pan size. That’s a pretty important step! Regarding the Pin – it seems that Pinterest has been having some trouble with its rich pins lately. Unfortunately that isn’t something that I directly control. Hopefully they will get it sorted out soon though!

I don’t provide nutritional data on my recipes, but there are a lot of free tools out there that do! Yummly is a great one. If you click the yum button on the recipe it’ll add it to your (free) yummly recipe box, and at the end of it the nutritional information will be displayed. Happy cooking!